'TRUTH'S' SENSATIONAL UNTRUTH

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXXIII, Issue 36, 7 September 1905, Page 3

'TRUTH'S' SENSATIONAL UNTRUTH

• A COMPLETE AND UNQUALIFIED WITHDRAWAL*

In cur last issue we painted out how •' Traith ' (ChristcbJurch) published some weeks ago a sensational story which (it said) had been telephoned to the ' Mattinio,,' an anticlerical daily paper with which the city of Naples (Italy) is afflicted., It (was, briefly, to this effect : thet two Capuchin Fathers at • Fium,aira,, in Calabria, <q|Li'ar relied aibout a female penitent ; that they pounded each other to the bestof their res^ectdve atrtllties ; tfiteut the other monks joined in the fray ; and that a sort of Domnybjrook melee proceeded merrily until the Prior, in desperation , rang an alarm bell, when the villagers appeared and the combatants dispersed. As soon as this tale from a far-off land appeared in our Christchturdh; contemporary we got upon its track. Inquiries are. bteing malde on our "behalf at Fiumara. Pending the arrival of our special correspondent's report, we ntay state that our enterprising contemporary, the ' Glasigjow Observer,' however, was in the field before us and in the Issue to hanjd'by the last American mall it points a wholly satisfactory and authorised exposure oV the now famous Calabrian ' scandal.' This was supplied by the * Observer's ' special correspondent. It consists of A Complete and Unqualified Withdrawal of •the accusation by the correspondent of the journals at ReggLo, in Calabria, wiho first reported the story, and of a triumphant vindication of the Capuchin Fathersl. Here (siays the ' Observer ') are (1) A letter from the Capuchin Superior, (2) .CopyJ of the retractation appearing in the newspapers involved ( July 2)^ which has also been sent to ' Daily Mail ' and ' Weekly Scotsjmian,' where it appeared :—: — Letter from the Superior of the Capuchins at Fiumara. Fiumara, 5 tin July, 1905. Dearest Sir, —At the same time that I send you this letter, I also forward you the two newspapers, " Mattino,' 1 of Naples, and " Gazaette," of Messina, where you will read the denial made by the correspondent of the said) {journals regarding the defamatory article which he had laH'owed himself to write. I earnestly trust that you will have this denial inserted in other foreign journals, and &o destroy in part the poisonous seed which Satan everywhere seeks to scatter. 1 What can you expect, my dear Sir ? There always have been persecutions against the Church and her clergy. Nevertheless, we kwow the enemie9 of Christ, while they persecute, do not overthrow — we shall always triumph. In thanking you in anticipation for the great pleasure you will do me in causing this to be inserted in other journals., I await a copy of them.— Yours devotedly, 4 FRIAR FEDELE MARIA, 1 Capuchin.' (Translation.) From the ' Gazzette ' of Messina and Calajb'ria, and the ''Mattino ' of Naples :— Calabria, Reg^io, July 1. * Concerning the supposed scandal in the Monastery of Fiumara. Dutiful Denial. ' Spme time ago we sent to this journal a communication referring 1 to a scandal which was supposed to have taken place between two Friars in the Monastery of Fiumara. ' The news cohtainoa in the communication by telephone was, as we said,, not only reported, but was formally Iginaramteed by several persons, and amongst thorn principally by An Evangelical Minister of this place. ' The said communication caused an extraordinary uproar, was reproduced by many otoer journals in Italy and elsewhere, especially Protestant, and alsjo in smaller sheets. ' The (Fathers accused in this report took, as they had a perfect right to do, an action against the "Gazzette " of Messina and of Calabfria, and its correspondent at Reipglio,, reserving action against the "Ora" of Palermo, and 1 the " Mattino- " of Naples. ' Hawing come to lonow this, wo fyegiafn to have serioiuo doubts as to the truth of the fact® narrated and reported, arid we believed it was our duty to make enqiulries regarding it among many persons worthy of credit, -who could have no motive in falsifying the truth. 1 With the greatest surprise we learned from them that the facts and circumstances reported by us are

destitute of any kind of foundation whatsoever, and ought to be attributed to enemies of the Franciscan Order rather than tihe personal enemies of the Friars. ' We have also visited in person Fiumara and the surrounding villages, and we are in- a position to certify that the Friars of the Monastery of Fiuniara, ami especially the two Friars, P. anS S., have afcaJl times and aLways do enjoy, the esteem of everybody without distinction ; as also we can certify tihat the facts have no foundation. ■> Impartial as we have always been, are, • and shall be, scrupulous and conscientious in tihe discharge of our delicate duties, we believe it is ouir duty to publish these as we published the first communication, the blame of which certainly cannot, and omlgtit not, to be attributed to us, bait to the implaoa'bfle hatred which not a few (bear to Catholicism and the Religious Orders. 'We do not think it superfluous or inopportune— lest we be accused of carelessness— 4o repeat that absolutely everything, even the most minute particulars contained in the commimication, came, not only reported, byit guaranteed to tile full,, from persons whose explicit statements we are preserving, ready to publish tihem whenever occasion demands.' It is highly satisfactory (says the • GJasgow Observer ') to have one more lie against the Mother of Saints Nailed to the Counter. A few salient points remain to be noted :— (1.) The principal liar concerned is an ' Evangelical Minister,' without doubt the same BonHbia who was thrashed the other day for scoffing at a Catholic procession.. Whether he is really a , minister of some Protestant sect, or merely a lay preacher at tihe fiend of some meetiing-^house, or an 'agent of a Bible Society (either of the last two is the more probable), we do not know, nor does it matter much. Emou«gjh! 'ttoat he .has baused to shine forth in Lurid colors the sweetness and purity of that reformed Christi'alnftty with which he is so aaixious to evaUgeli.se tihe f^frtlhtfull CalaWHans. Anyone may "be nrfsled either toy 'his o,wn senses or by the mistake of- others, and thus uinwitting-ly form a rash judgment ; bttt that am ' Evangelical Minister ' of any Species whatso ever shbfu'M deliberately set ■Mmself to concoct such a ile story, down to the most minute particulars, and with siuch a circirmstantialilty of detail as t}o forbid the supposition that he was merely mistaken ; further, that he should guarantee and certify it as the truth, for the purpose of ruining, if possible, the reputation of holy religions who are consecrated by the most solemm vows to serve God "day and ni'gfa't*— this, Mlced, would 'bte almost incredible were it not that we are already painfully familiar with it. Let us liopc and pray that the utahappy man may soon emancipate himself from the dominion of Satan, whose servant he is. (2.) Notice the contrast : the ' Evangelical Minister,' professing to preach a purer Gospel, fabricates A Foul Lie to destroy the character of the Friars— the Superior of the Friars, for charity's sake (as he wrote), withdraws* the slaJnider action by which he would have certainly, have gained much from the journals, and is content witfh a formal retractation. This breathes the spirit of Jesus. We cannot hut feel that both Bomba and his dujpes have got off extraordinarily cheap. (3.) It is very remarkable that it is against the most saintly innocent men that these calumnies are directed. Now it is Leo XIII. ; now it is Cardinal Rampolla, a model of piety and mortification. At Albamo the Fathers slandered were held in the highest reputation for sanctity ; so it is Ln this case. But it ds enough for the 'disciple that he be as his Master. 'If they persecute Me, they will also perseoute you.' St. Gerard Majella, the lately oankmised Redempitbrist lay brother, lay for mine months, deprived of Holy Convmiu'nion, and disgraced, under a most foul and awful imp'utatiion. Even St. Alphonsus wa9 deceived. At last the calumniator wjote to St. Alpfhomstus to say tihat ' all she SariJd abfout Brother Gerard was- untrue and inspired by the devil.' When asked why "he r h/ad not defended his innocence, tihe boy only replied, ' Does not the rule forbid me ta excuse myself when lam blamed <?) It was this (1754) that made St. Alphionsu's say, ' Gerard is a great saint.' (4.) It is obtvlous, from wihat the journals themsel\es admit— and they are a good authority on such a point^tMat the same Anti-Catholic Agents have fo'een at work in Calabria as at Albano and Tivoll and Brfridisi. It is the secret dagger of the Socialist, the Freemason, anQ the Infidel that is everywhere

Idrawn, not so much against individuals as such, but against Jesus Christ and His Church. They are consumed with hatred agains<t Catholicism. This is an argument for its Divinity. (5.) It is earnestly to be "hoped that Catholics in Scotland and England will steel their minds< and harden their hearts against any and every story what soever that they may read detrimental to the Catholic Church abroad. The Anti-Oatholic movement in Britain is a wealc and foolish thing : it lacks earnestness, sincerity, depth of conviction ; its supporters are not people of weight . it provokes ridicule, and very often uezlcs oiut in some stupid way. On the Continent it is far otherwise. Ctoe only needs to live for some time in a country where anti-clericalism is rampant, to realise how deep and terrible is its enmity to the Cajtholic religion ■;) how utterly, lost to all sense of truth and morality in attempting lit s ruin. The anti-Catholic bodies are organised far and' wide with agents in every branch of life, bound together by deadly hatred of a common foe, inspired with all the concentrated malice of the Devil towards Catholic Christianity (Protestant Christianity does not trouble them), and they cease not to use means the most cruel and diabolical to attain their object. Indeed, tiicir excess of zeal often leads them to fabricate the most grotesque and incredible charges, which every sensible Catholic knows at once to be sheer nonsense. But the story appears in Protestant journals and in the British press • Catholics read it : Ihey aro disedified, grieved, scandalised : whaft can theyi say ? Let them say without fear, without doubt, 'It is a lie ' it ia tho Devil sowing his seed !' and in 999 cases out of 1000 they will be right. The 1000 th case may very; well bo left to the ecclesiastical authorities.